hybridveggies:
Vegetable business can be very interesting business sometimes with mouth-watering returns but the truth remains; not everyone who attempts to do the business of vegetable production will be successful as it is with every business. The problems and the opportunities associated with doing the business must be carefully studied, analyzed and considered. Vegetable production is just one of the elements of the business itself. Asides having proven production techniques and good yield, you need to be able to sell at good price before a good return on your investment can be guaranteed. A sound marketing strategy therefore is of utmost importance to successful business.
Developing an effective marketing strategy takes time, experience and inputs of more experienced farmers as you are about to read in this article. Similar to other businesses, crop farmers are at the mercy of both biotic and abiotic factors beyond their control and this sometime tilt the outcome from within their reach. Reducing risk and managing uncertainty are pivotal to the success of farming business and one of the ways of actualizing that is by developing a good marketing strategy similar to what large corporations do. The procedures required to develop good marketing strategies shall be shared in this article and detail analysis shall be given. Please note that most of the examples used are mostly characterized by the writer’s geographical location but the same principles apply globally.

Steps involve in forming marketing strategies can be categorized into four: None of these steps stand in isolation but are inter-related. For example, deciding on what to produce depends on when and the target market and by extension the packaging structure to employ.
- Decide on target market
- Produce decision and timing
- Price intelligence
- Understand and use of human psychology: Psychology of First impression

DECIDE ON TARGET MARKET
Decision on the choice of market is not just hinge on the market offering the highest price possible but that which fit the circumstances of farmers. Have you every drive along the interior country sides where you see pocket of local farmers putting just one sack bag of harvest by the road side waiting for tricycle or vehicle to convey them home? Can such farmers be targeting urban markets in Lagos for example which are over 1000 km away just because they offer higher prices?
Deciding on the target market is mostly volume dependent. In general, the larger the volume of produce produced, the greater the number of marketing alternatives. Small farmers are limited to local markets while larger farmers can explore the opportunities in regional markets. This principle is exactly what aggregators or vegetable merchants do; they visit on farmers’ market day where every small farmer brings their produce, they buy appreciable quantity and transport such to regional urban markets where it would be sold at higher margin.
For every marketing alternative available, you must realize that there are pro and con to it. The following summarized the likely alternatives available to farmers.

One of the most popular methods of sales of farm produce especially with locals is selling at the farm. It has the advantage in that it limits the risk of selling at uncertain price at the market notorious with vegetables after spending so much on transporting the produce. Transportation of produce using commercial service can often take as much as 20% to 50% of total sales of produce in many occasions. Selling at the farm gate also eliminate the cost of payment for dealership (popularly called “laada” in West Africa). The farmers can also safe themselves of the cost of harvesting depending on the negotiation had with the buyers.
However, it also has its shortcoming. The farmer may be short changed by unscrupulous buyers if the former does not do his/her price intelligence beforehand. Moreover, the farmers may lose the benefit of selling at skyrocketed prices which is often the characteristics of general veggies markets though this may also work for the farmers when price falls (Read on through: http://www.hybridveggies.com/2019/01/understanding-and-developing-marketing.html#more

hybridveggies:
Vegetable business can be very interesting business sometimes with mouth-watering returns but the truth remains; not everyone who attempts to do the business of vegetable production will be successful as it is with every business. The problems and the opportunities associated with doing the business must be carefully studied, analyzed and considered. Vegetable production is just one of the elements of the business itself. Asides having proven production techniques and good yield, you need to be able to sell at good price before a good return on your investment can be guaranteed. A sound marketing strategy therefore is of utmost importance to successful business.
Developing an effective marketing strategy takes time, experience and inputs of more experienced farmers as you are about to read in this article. Similar to other businesses, crop farmers are at the mercy of both biotic and abiotic factors beyond their control and this sometime tilt the outcome from within their reach. Reducing risk and managing uncertainty are pivotal to the success of farming business and one of the ways of actualizing that is by developing a good marketing strategy similar to what large corporations do. The procedures required to develop good marketing strategies shall be shared in this article and detail analysis shall be given. Please note that most of the examples used are mostly characterized by the writer’s geographical location but the same principles apply globally.

Steps involve in forming marketing strategies can be categorized into four: None of these steps stand in isolation but are inter-related. For example, deciding on what to produce depends on when and the target market and by extension the packaging structure to employ.
- Decide on target market
- Produce decision and timing
- Price intelligence
- Understand and use of human psychology: Psychology of First impression

DECIDE ON TARGET MARKET
Decision on the choice of market is not just hinge on the market offering the highest price possible but that which fit the circumstances of farmers. Have you every drive along the interior country sides where you see pocket of local farmers putting just one sack bag of harvest by the road side waiting for tricycle or vehicle to convey them home? Can such farmers be targeting urban markets in Lagos for example which are over 1000 km away just because they offer higher prices?
Deciding on the target market is mostly volume dependent. In general, the larger the volume of produce produced, the greater the number of marketing alternatives. Small farmers are limited to local markets while larger farmers can explore the opportunities in regional markets. This principle is exactly what aggregators or vegetable merchants do; they visit on farmers’ market day where every small farmer brings their produce, they buy appreciable quantity and transport such to regional urban markets where it would be sold at higher margin.
For every marketing alternative available, you must realize that there are pro and con to it. The following summarized the likely alternatives available to farmers.

One of the most popular methods of sales of farm produce especially with locals is selling at the farm. It has the advantage in that it limits the risk of selling at uncertain price at the market notorious with vegetables after spending so much on transporting the produce. Transportation of produce using commercial service can often take as much as 20% to 50% of total sales of produce in many occasions. Selling at the farm gate also eliminate the cost of payment for dealership (popularly called “laada” in West Africa). The farmers can also safe themselves of the cost of harvesting depending on the negotiation had with the buyers.
However, it also has its shortcoming. The farmer may be short changed by unscrupulous buyers if the former does not do his/her price intelligence beforehand. Moreover, the farmers may lose the benefit of selling at skyrocketed prices which is often the characteristics of general veggies markets though this may also work for the farmers when price falls (Read on through: http://www.hybridveggies.com/2019/01/understanding-and-developing-marketing.html#more